Scripture
One day soon afterwards Jesus went out into the mountains to pray, and He prayed all night.
~Luke 6:12, LNT
Quote
Our greatest hindrance in prayer is that we make it more about us than we do the Father.
~Charles Stanley
Jesus was the only Begotten. Someone said, “God has many sons, but only ONE without sin.” This means that Jesus had powers we don’t have and also problems that we don’t have. I don’t have a CROWD PROBLEM. Everywhere Jesus went, there were crowds. He couldn’t get away from the crowds; they hikes for miles just to hear Him preach and to see His miracles. Everywhere Jesus went people were waiting in line to get His help. Jesus knew how to meet needs: He taught them; He healed them; He even feed them. Can you imagine trying to go to Krogers or Dollar General and when you get there, people come from every direction wanting you to do something for them…Bro. Jack, will you come to my house and heal my daughter; would you speak to my brother about dividing the inheritance; would you make me one of your assistants; would you bless my children; would you restore my sight… the demands were endless. This was what life was like for Jesus–a constant barrage of selfish request. Of course, you and I don’t have this problem: we can’t heal anyone and everyone knows it. Have you ever thought about what didn’t happen in Jesus incarnation. No one came to Him and said, “LORD, I don’t want anything, I just want to tell You how much I love and appreciate YOU. I want to thank YOU for leaving the comforts of heaven and coming here to seek and to save us. I just want You to know, whether YOU bless me or not, that I love and admire YOU and I rather die than to hurt or betray YOU.”
Not only did He face this constant barrage of request from selfish people; he faced the constant hounding the JRL {Jewish Religious Leaders}. Every where Jesus went they followed and it was one complaint after another: “You blasphemed…You eat with notorious sinners…Your disciples are feasting instead of fasting…You broke the law by plucking grain on the sabbath.” It was one accusation after another. I’m not saying that you and I don’t have enemies, but we don’t have as many as Jesus. He faced opposition and hostility every day of His life. Two verses prior to today’s text, the bible says…Jesus looked around at them one by one and then said to the man, “Hold out your hand.” So the man held out his hand, and it was restored! At this, the enemies of Jesus were wild with rage and began to discuss what to do with him.
No wonder He withdrew to the mountains and spent a night in prayer. It was probably the most wonderful night He had here on earth. You and I pray but we are so inhibited with fear, guilt and anxiety that we are like a sniveling child. Jesus had no inhibitions, no hang-ups, nothing to hinder sweet and pure fellowship with the Father. Our prayers are more about our needs than they are about the wonder, awe and goodness of the Father. Prayer was sweet communion for Jesus. This does not mean that it is wrong to ask because Jesus commanded us to ask but our prayers should be more than asking. Bill Stafford tells a story about his experience as Pastor of a Baptist Church in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The church had several problems including a massive debt and Bill wanted to get them to praying. When they meet for prayer, some of them began talking about their personal needs and Bill erupted…“Hold it, we are not here to talk about your needs. This prayer is not about you nor your needs. We are going to focus on God who is the only one who can get us out of this mess. What I want you to do is praise Him. We’re going to do that until He moves on us.” Perhaps our prayers lack power due to the fact we are focused on ourselves.
- Today we start a new series. I’m going to be {LORD willing} sharing from my normal bible reading and daily experience. I did enjoy my study of Psalms, Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. perhaps some day we will do Job.
- I bought a SMART TV to use for a monitor at the house. My old computer has just about had it and I bought a rebuilt lap top several months back but wanted a bigger monitor. The man at Wally World told me the SMART TV would work at a monitor but that it would not be as good. He was right. I will probably correct the problem in a few weeks but right now, we will make do.
